A recent survey carried out by spareroom.co.uk claims that tenants living in shared rental accommodation are more at risk due to a lack of working smoke alarms. Despite the fact that all landlords are now required to have working smoke alarms and CO detectors installed in rental properties, many are unaware of the recent regulatory […]
A demolition team was called in by Ealing Council after a landlady refused to comply with an enforcement notice served last summer. The demolition was carried out at the end of September. The landlady will be billed for the full cost, and if she continues to ignore the matter and not settle the bill, the […]
A petition set up in opposition to proposed tax changes for landlords in the buy to let sector has now surpassed 35,000 signatures, but it still has a way to go before it triggers a parliamentary debate.
An important Bill that seeks to get rid of rogue landlords is about to have its second reading in parliament. The Bill, introduced by Dame Angela Watkinson, has taken on board Residential Landlords Association proposals to enable local authorities to use information on Council Tax forms for the identification of criminal landlords.
The Welsh Government has finally announced a start date for the Rent Smart Wales initiative. Previous press releases on the subject were frustratingly vague, but we can now confirm that the scheme will be launched on November 23rd.
As a responsible landlord, you probably spend quite a lot of time and effort making your rental properties comfortable and reasonably attractive to tenants. This might involve fitting new carpets when the old ones wear out and replacing an out-dated kitchen with a shiny new one.
A Home Office press released issued on 20th October confirms what many suspected would happen: as of February 1st. 2016, the Right to Rent Immigration checks on tenants will become mandatory.
Most landlords state “no pets” when advertising rental properties. The reason being pets can cause untold damage and even if the tenant has paid a deposit, the sum may not cover the cost of replacing carpets, skirting boards, doors, and anything else destroyed by an animal. These days, however, more and more tenants are looking […]
The government has announced changes to planning policy, so instead of developers being required to include a percentage of affordable homes in every new housing development, they will now have to build and sell starter homes instead.
Rent controls have been a frequent topic in the news in the last few months. Labour are keen to introduce them but the private rental sector believes that such a measure would be disastrous for landlords and tenants. Up to now there has been no real factual research to show what would happen if rent […]
The announcement by chancellor George Osborne that tax breaks for landlords would be reduced from next year was a huge blow for many people operating in the buy to let sector. Industry experts believe that the loss of valuable tax breaks could mark a decline in the buy to let sector as landlords see their […]
Landlords are required by law to install working smoke and CO alarms in their properties. However, trading standards officials from Leicestershire County Council have issued a warning to landlords to check whether the CO alarms they purchase do actually work.
When the recession hit in 2007, the UK housing market crashed in spectacular fashion. Tens of thousands of pounds were wiped off the value of properties all over the country and people who had bought at the height of the boom, were left in the unfavourable position of owning a property worth less than their […]
The current mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has chosen not to run for a third term in office now he is MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip. This leaves an opening for new candidates, one of whom has now been confirmed as Sadiq Khan from the Labour Party.
Back to blog